Buddhism

Interview with Philosopher Dr. Hiroshi Tasaka

TJ: How do you define Buddhism?

TASAKA: Buddhism is a kind of “cosmology” that can accept various value systems - not only religions but philosophies that exist around the world. Zen Buddhism, especially, is a “philosophy of contradiction” that can accept all the contradictions in our life, because contradiction is an essence of life. An important thing in Buddhism is the ability to keep the contradictions in mind, to keep gazing at them and think about the meaning of the contradictions.

TJ: In Europe, many philosophers think Buddhism is not a religion but more of a way to understand life or a style of life because it is not theist. What do you think?

TASAKA: It depends on the definition of religion. If we define a religion as a value system centering around one god, then Buddhism is not a religion. Buddhism sees numerous gods, Buddhahood, everywhere – in mountains, rivers, grass, trees, land and even in the wind. However, we need to understand that religion itself is in the process of transformation and evolution in today’s age. An important question is, “What religious systems will replace the old religious systems in the 21st century?” Even a traditional religious system should transform itself to adapt to the changes in people’s minds in modern society.

TJ: We are very interested in knowing how Buddhism views life and death. Could you explain what life and death means to you?

TASAKA: For Buddhists, there is no difference between life and death in their true meaning because life and death share the same reality in life. If we hope to talk about death, we need to answer the question, “Whose death is it?” Is it the death of the Small Ego or the death of the Great Self? Once we ask this question, we will find that the Great Self cannot die. If we see the Small Ego in our mind, it will die sooner or later. However, if we see the Great Self as the world itself, then there is no life and death. A famous philosopher left an important message to us: “You are the world. The world is you”. tj

The complete article can be found in Issue #274 of the Tokyo Journal. Click here to order from Amazon.

Japanese Nagtional Tea CeremonyTreasures Displayed in L.A.

THE 92-year-old Daisosho (Grand Master) Dr. Genshitsu Sen XV visited the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) on May 24, 2015 to showcase the museum’s March 29 – June 7 exhibition Raku: The Cosmos in a Tea Bowl. The exhibition of 100 ceramic tea ceremony objects spanning five centuries was the first of its kind in the U.S. free of the items were Japanese national treasures, two of which were tea bowls made by the earliest Raku potter Chojiro and lent to LACMA by the Daisosho out of the Urasenke Foundation’s collection.

Japanese Nagtional Tea CeremonyTreasures Displayed in L.A.

THE 92-year-old Daisosho (Grand Master) Dr. Genshitsu Sen XV visited the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) on May 24, 2015 to showcase the museum’s March 29 – June 7 exhibition Raku: The Cosmos in a Tea Bowl. The exhibition of 100 ceramic tea ceremony objects spanning five centuries was the first of its kind in the U.S. free of the items were Japanese national treasures, two of which were tea bowls made by the earliest Raku potter Chojiro and lent to LACMA by the Daisosho out of the Urasenke Foundation’s collection.

Nearly 600 people silently watched as the Daisosho solemnly prepared a tea offering dedicated to continuing harmonious Japan-U.S. relations and world peace. The Daisosho gave a lecture on his experiences with Raku tea bowls that began with his first chanoyu ( Japanese tea ceremony) lesson when he was six years old. He explained how Sen no Rikyu, his ancestor who lived 500 years ago, formulated the concepts behind chado (the way of tea). He ended his lecture by inviting the audience to a room arranged specially by the Chado Urasenke Tankokai Los Angeles Association so that they could “experience the cosmos in a bowl of tea.”

The exhibition traveled to Russia where it was to be on view in St. Petersburg’s State Hermitage Museum from July 11 to September 6 and Moscow’s Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts from September 22 to November 15, 2015. tj

The complete article can be found in Issue #277 of the Tokyo Journal. Click here to order from Amazon.

Hanjo

A sullen geisha sitting alone at a station, Hanako waits, For years, she has waited every day in the same place, gripping a treasured fan in her hand.

Such an exquisite beauty, she was noticed by all. The world wondered how she could be so passively obsessive. The conclusion was that she must be mad.

What her spectators didn’t know was that the fan she held was the embodiment of a vow she had made to the man who possessed her heart. Hanako had promised to love Yoshio eternally. When he had to depart, he had given her a fan to represent their love, which would be requited upon his return. And so she had sworn that she would wait.

Hanjo

A sullen geisha sitting alone at a station, Hanako waits, For years, she has waited every day in the same place, gripping a treasured fan in her hand.

Such an exquisite beauty, she was noticed by all. The world wondered how she could be so passively obsessive. The conclusion was that she must be mad.

What her spectators didn’t know was that the fan she held was the embodiment of a vow she had made to the man who possessed her heart. Hanako had promised to love Yoshio eternally. When he had to depart, he had given her a fan to represent their love, which would be requited upon his return. And so she had sworn that she would wait.

The story continues with Hanako being purchased from the geisha house by Jitsuko, a painter who is unsuccessful in profession and love. Jitsuko wants to live vicariously through Hanako’s radiance. When a newspaper article appears about the geisha who waits eternally at the station, Jitsuko flies into a rage and panics that her muse will be taken from her desperate grasp.

Such is the premise of Hanjo, a 15th century Noh opera, famously revised by Yukio Mishima in 1952. Hanjo is a tale about the universal human tendency to place the key to one’s own happiness in the hands of another. It is the tale’s realistic and unhappy end − thematically consistent with present genres − combined with the traditional use of multifaceted characters, that inspired German photographer, Yoram Roth. His photographic novel and exhibition pay homage to this work, which is both classic and currently relevant, in this era of post-narrative motifs, in which aesthetics and substance are too often abandoned.

The sets, most costumes and decorative stage-props were all created specifically for this ambitious project – one which intertwines the language of fashion photography with story elements to engage the viewer. The images require a certain level of personal interpretation and reference Meiji era, 19th century, hand-colored Japanese photography.

The photo book is available through Camera Work. Roth’s work has been exhibited throughout Europe and Asia, including at Tokyo Photo 2013. tj

The complete article can be found in Issue #274 of the Tokyo Journal. Click here to order from Amazon.

How a studio trained director quit the system to go independent and become one of the most influential filmmakers in Japanese history.

NAGISA Oshima, one of Japan’s most influential and controversial film directors, died January 15 in a hospital near Tokyo at the age of 80. Several years prior I attended a few screenings of his work at a Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s retrospective, the first showing of his films in North America in over two decades. It was during the “In the Realm of Oshima” retrospective that I discovered the genius of Ôshima, a genius to be honored with his passing.

How a studio trained director quit the system to go independent and become one of the most influential filmmakers in Japanese history.

NAGISA Oshima, one of Japan’s most influential and controversial film directors, died January 15 in a hospital near Tokyo at the age of 80. Several years prior I attended a few screenings of his work at a Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s retrospective, the first showing of his films in North America in over two decades. It was during the “In the Realm of Oshima” retrospective that I discovered the genius of Ôshima, a genius to be honored with his passing.

Kyoto, Shochiku Company Ltd.

Nagisa Oshima was born March 31, 1932 to an affluent family in Kyoto. He studied law at Kyoto University and was actively involved in the student politics and protest movement of the time. In 1954, he began as an apprentice at the Shochiku Company movie studio and became a director before the end of the decade. Shochiku saw the need to attract the country’s growing youth movement and responded by giving new talent a chance, lifting some of the studio restrictions on the films these new directors wanted to make. Ôshima made his first films at Shochiku before forming his own production company, Sozosha, with the actress Akiko Koyama, whom he married in 1960.

“Nûberu bâgu”

The Japanese New Wave, or Nûberu bâgu, describes a group of Japanese filmmakers emerging out of the late 1950s and through the early 1970s who sought to push the creative boundaries of the studio system and extend Japanese film beyond standard conventions. Ôshima is one of several Japanese film directors considered to have been instrumental to the movement. Unlike France’s New Wave, or La Nouvelle Vague, the movement in Japan had its genesis in the film studios but quickly found momentum in independent production companies. Ôshima had a kinship with the French movement through leftist activism and from his work as a film critic and then editor-in-chief of the film magazine Eiga Hihyo before joining the studio system. Films of this period include:

”Night and Fog in Japan” (Nihon no Yoru to Kiri, 1960) is an indictment of the disunity within Japanese leftist politics. The film was quickly pulled following the assassination of a Socialist politician by a right-wing student.

”The Catch” (Shiiku, 1961) was Ôshima’s first independent movie. It tells the story of an African-American POW held hostage by a small village. “Violence at Noon” (Hakuchû no Tôrima, 1966) is an obscure study of a rapist and two of his victims.

”Death by Hanging” (Kôshikei, 1968) is a darkly humorous film about a young Korean being hanged for the rape and murder of two Japanese girls. But his body refuses to die. The film becomes more surreal as it progresses.

”Diary of a Shinjuku Thief ” (Shinjuku Dorobô Nikki, 1969) looks at a young student caught shoplifting in a bookshop by a girl masquerading as an assistant, and with whom he goes on to have an affair.

In the Realm of the Senses, Empire of Passion, Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence

”In the Realm of the Senses” (Ai no Corrida, 1976), based on actual events, tells the story of a hotel owner and a geisha who retreat from the imperialist rise of the 1930s into a world of obsessive sexual fantasies. Ôshima, a critic of censorship, was determined that the film should feature unsimulated sex and thus the undeveloped film had to be transported to France to be processed and edited. An uncensored version of the movie still isn’t available in Japan.

”Empire of Passion” (Ai no Bôrê, 1978) portrays a crime of passion followed by a ghostly haunting. The film won Ôshima the Palme d’Or for best director at the Cannes Film Festival.

Ôshima’s only English-language film, ”Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence” (Senjô no Merî Kurisumasu, 1983), is set in a Japanese POW camp. It attempts to show some of the more noble qualities of some soldiers despite the wartime atrocities they committed.

Ôshima’s Legacy

Many of Nagisa Ôshima’s films continue to hold their impact and message with the passing of time and after his death, and they will continue to influence cineastes and filmmakers the world over. tj

The complete article is available in Issue #271. Click here to order from Amazon

Reprint of August 1983 article

You switch on your TV set any day of the week and there’s Oshima Nagisa conversing about things sociological on a mid-day women’s program or on the panel of a “Whodunit” murder-quiz or, a few days ago, introducing the highlights of Star Wars. He even appears clad in shorts and wielding a butterfly net in a current anti-cockroach TV commercial. Ten years ago, Oshima Nagisa was the darling of dissent, the hirsute enfant terrible of the Japanese cinematic New Wave which he had virtually created in 1960. Whatever Oshima was then, it was and still is impossible to hang a label on him. His radical ideas and politically oriented films placed him in the camp of the leftists, but his Night and Fog in Japan denounced the power-hungry in-fighting and monolithic structure of Japan’s leftist factions. In a country in which everyone voluntarily ascribes to one group or other, Oshima stands alone.

Reprint of August 1983 article

You switch on your TV set any day of the week and there’s Oshima Nagisa conversing about things sociological on a mid-day women’s program or on the panel of a “Whodunit” murder-quiz or, a few days ago, introducing the highlights of Star Wars. He even appears clad in shorts and wielding a butterfly net in a current anti-cockroach TV commercial. Ten years ago, Oshima Nagisa was the darling of dissent, the hirsute enfant terrible of the Japanese cinematic New Wave which he had virtually created in 1960. Whatever Oshima was then, it was and still is impossible to hang a label on him. His radical ideas and politically oriented films placed him in the camp of the leftists, but his Night and Fog in Japan denounced the power-hungry in-fighting and monolithic structure of Japan’s leftist factions. In a country in which everyone voluntarily ascribes to one group or other, Oshima stands alone.

All Oshima’s films are different, for each one is a personal challenge, an approach to new, always controversial subject matter which no one else can predict. His reputation abroad has grown, as in Japan, through films such as Boy, Death by Hanging and The Ceremony, and what these films hold most in common is a clean-cut, impartial exposure of the human condition and an airing of some of the skeletons Japan’s Establishment would rather see kept in the closet. His TV documentaries and early films dealt with discrimination against Koreans in Japan; others considered the criminal as an irresponsible product of society.

The French producer Anatole Dauman once jokingly suggested that Oshima make a porno movie. Seeing this as a challenge, Oshima took Dauman at his word and had him produce Ai no Corida (The Realm of the Senses) in 1976. Oshima’s most controversial film to date, it depicted the tremendous and pathetic power of physical love as no film has ever done before or since. Graphically erotic, it has never been seen in Japan in any form other than a version so mutilated by censorship as to be devoid of meaning.

Ai no Corida has been playing for over five years in a single Left Bank cinema in Paris. It is not just because of the appeal of the subject matter for Japanese tourists eager for the uncensored version; it is also because Oshima’s films are particularly popular in France. Oshima’s Japanese New Wave and the French Nouvelle Vague have much in common conceptually and ideologically. The jury at this year’s Cannes Film Festival however, was less enthusiastic than critics and audiences, and Oshima’s stunning new Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence gleaned no prizes. Since its opening in Paris last month, the film has nevertheless been playing steadily in theaters packed to the rafters, and its release is eagerly awaited in Europe and the United States.

Despite cutting a flamboyant figure in his lilac suits or embroidered dinner jackets on TV, Oshima is reserved. Having trimmed the wild shock of hair of his earlier radical image, Oshima has mellowed and looks leonine and dignified. He grins readily as he talks and his infectious laughter wells up not infrequently, as if the thought of 24 years of controversial, provocative films jabbing into the side of an increasingly standardized Japanese film industry amuses him. We asked him what moved him to make Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence. “I was very attracted to something in Laurens Van Der Post’s novel, The Seed and the Sower. I’m not quite sure why, and it’s because I wasn’t sure that I decided to turn it into a film. I knew it was going to be difficult, that I’d have to work partly with a foreign cast – in English.”

Shot in the tropical paradise of Raratonga, the film centers on a brutal World War II POW camp. With Japan eager to sweep its wartime role under the carpet, the subject is controversial enough to be perfectly suited to Oshima. The difficulties involved with shooting it constitute a perfect challenge, an essential Oshima prerequisite for making a film. The script left leeway for spontaneity; Oshima holds that a movie should make itself. “I hate lengthy discussions” he laughs. Moreover, like France’s Robert Bresson, Oshima dislikes using professional actors. “They act too much.”

Oshima saw David Bowie onstage in The Elephant Man in New York City, and in a kind of flash of inspiration, he knew that Bowie was “right.” “Bowie was the key figure,” says Oshima, “The rest of the cast came later.” Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, apart from the immediately obvious story of a POW camp in the second world war, is for Oshima the stage for an allegory about a love-hate relationship between the West and Japan. Thus, with Bowie as the British POW hero, rock-star Sakamoto Ryuichi was the obvious choice for Bowie’s Japanese counterpart, the rigid fascist doll, Captain Yonoi. TV comedian Beat Takeshi portrays brutal Sergeant Hara, a man instinctively abusing the power bestowed upon him by a regime he lacks the intellect to either understand or contest. Simultaneously criminal and victim, he is a typical Oshima figure to be seen in films past.

As the film progresses, action concerning the Japanese side seems to be expressed as a kind of perpetual ceremony, with Westerners acting more along the lines of conventional realism. “The Japanese army,” Oshima maintains, “was a very rigid ceremonial affair. Ritual was inherent in it. But curiously, while we were shooting the film, I noticed that Japanese actors, too, took the entire business of making a movie in ritual terms. Westerners, on the other hand, were more natural, I decided to let it happen, to exploit this phenomenon as I went along.”

The fact that Oshima casts stars such as Bowie and Sakamoto has led some to think that his motives were purely commercial. Oshima grins. He agrees. “But I would never,” he adds seriously, “Have used any of them if I hadn’t simultaneously known that they perfectly suited my intentions.” One of these intentions was the usual deliberate rejections of conventional realism, this time to achieve more impact on an allegorical level. The object was also to attract young audiences. This is not only because there is an entire generation in Japan who know nothing about the last war, but it is also a contribution towards breaking down the barriers preventing understanding between Japan and the West.

He feels that there are subtle differences between Japanese and Western interpretations, particularly in the key scene, which sees condemned POW David Bowie kissing his captor Yonoi, who hero-worships him, on the cheek. “Young Japanese, especially women, saw in this kiss a kind of Christ-like compassion.” I doubt whether a Western audience would see it the same way. It would seem to be more of a gesture of defiance.” As to what his opinion might be, Oshima remains silent, delighting in the enigma, the possibilities which can make an audience think.

“It’s not just that I want young people in Japan to know more about the war. More specially, I want to remind the Japanese that they invaded other Asian countries and treated their populations very badly. Although this is not mentioned directly in the film, I implied it symbolically by showing the brutal treatment of a Korean soldier. The Japanese, having lost the war, turn more towards their victors. They forget about the people they once invaded and consider themselves part of the West.”

As to what Oshima will do next, it is an enigma as usual. He will spend most of this year travelling to the four corners of the earth, promoting Mr. Lawrence and trying to fulfill at least some of the countless demands for interviews and TV appearances. He has been reported to say that he would like to make a film abroad again, this time with a completely non-Japanese cast. “I built up a loot of confidence through working with a foreign cast with Mr. Lawrence. Making a film with an entirely foreign cast is something I’m actually working towards.” What such a film will be, Oshima declines to mention. Whatever it is, it will be unexpected, controversial and a challenge for the director. It will be undoubtedly be pure Oshima Nagisa and well worth waiting for. tj

The complete article is available in Issue #271. Click here to order from Amazon

In Japan, tattoos have long been associated with yakuza gang members. Today, tattoos represent a form of self-expression that is here to stay.

Tattoo You

Tattooing through the Ages

For centuries, many cultures around the world have practiced the art of tattooing including tribal groups in Borneo, Cambodia, Europe, Japan, the Mentawai Islands, Micronesia, New Zealand, Nigeria, North America, the Philippines, South America, Taiwan, and Turkey. “Britons” translates as “people of the designs” and the British remain the most tattooed in Europe.

Tattoos no longer taboo?

The cultural status of tattooing has evolved from being considered an anti-social activity in the 1960s to a trendy fashion statement in the 1990s. No longer are tattoos limited to the bikers, gangsters, rock stars and the military. Today, movie stars, professional sports figures, fashion models and other public figures who play a significant role in setting cultural norms and behavioral patterns are sporting tattoos.

In Japan, tattoos have long been associated with yakuza gang members. Today, tattoos represent a form of self-expression that is here to stay.

Tattoo You

Tattooing through the Ages

For centuries, many cultures around the world have practiced the art of tattooing including tribal groups in Borneo, Cambodia, Europe, Japan, the Mentawai Islands, Micronesia, New Zealand, Nigeria, North America, the Philippines, South America, Taiwan, and Turkey. “Britons” translates as “people of the designs” and the British remain the most tattooed in Europe.

Tattoos no longer taboo?

The cultural status of tattooing has evolved from being considered an anti-social activity in the 1960s to a trendy fashion statement in the 1990s. No longer are tattoos limited to the bikers, gangsters, rock stars and the military. Today, movie stars, professional sports figures, fashion models and other public figures who play a significant role in setting cultural norms and behavioral patterns are sporting tattoos.

Tattoos by Numbers

In 1936, Life magazine estimated that 10 million Americans, or approximately 6% of the population, had at least one tattoo. A 2012 Harris poll shows that this number has more than tripled to 21%, with one in five U.S. adults having at least one tattoo. In the U.S., adults aged 30-39 are the most likely to have a tattoo (38%), and for the first time since this question was first asked, women are slightly more likely than men to have a tattoo (23% versus 19%).

Why are Americans getting tatted down.... and do they regret it?

According to the Harris report, most people with a tattoo have never regretted getting one (86%). Thirty percent say it makes them feel sexier, 25% say a tattoo makes them feel rebellious, 21% say it makes them feel attractive or strong, 16% say it makes them feel spiritual, and 9% say it makes them feel more healthy. Another 8% say it makes them feel intelligent and 5% say it makes them feel athletic.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder

While 30% of those with tattoos said it makes them feel sexier, 45% of the people with no tattoos who were polled said that people with tattoos are less attractive, 39% said they are less sexy, 27% said they are less intelligent, 25% said they are less healthy and 25% said they are less spiritual.

Are people displaying their tattoos loud and proud?

Although the number of people inking their skin is increasing, most remain conservative. In a 2010 Pew Research poll, 72% of those with tattoos hid their ink, with many opting to mark their backs and stomachs rather than their forearms or calves. Men tend to be more extroverted with 23% placing their tattoos in a publicly visible spot compared with 13% of women.

What’s popular in Japan?

The indigenous people of Japan, the Ainu, traditionally had facial tattoos. In modern times, the Japanese yakuza gangsters have been famous for their full-body tattoos. Popular tattoos include mythical beasts, koi fish, flowers, samurai warriors, guns, and Kanji symbols with important meanings, with women often picking cherry blossoms and lotus flowers.

Tattoo backlash in Osaka

Although Japanese celebrities such as Namie Amuro and Mika Nakashima like to flaunt their ink, not everyone is a fan. In May 2012, Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto reacted to the rising number of tattoos by launching an allout investigation of government employees with a mandatory survey asking whether they had tattoos and, if so, to indicate where on their body. 110 of the 34,000 government employees reported that they had tattoos, including sea turtles, moons and dolphins, with 98 of those reporting that they were in visible locations. 513 government employees and approximately 800 teachers and other education professionals refused to respond to Hashimoto’s survey, saying it infringed on their right to privacy. This was met with a threat from Hashimoto, who stated, “If you think you can do whatever you like without getting fired or without getting demoted, you’d better think twice.”

The future: Will we become tattooed cyborgs?

The art of tattooing is going high-tech! Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have been developing micro-thin and flexible silicon electronics that can be implanted under the skin. These LED tattoo devices can conform to the body’s shape without causing irritation or interfering with normal physiological processes. One benefit of the LED tattoos is that they might be changeable, allowing those getting tattooed in a drunken stupor to not get stuck with a bad choice in designs. Nokia has developed haptic tattoos. What is a haptic tattoo? Imagine ringtone meets tattoo: It’s a tattoo that vibrates when some one calls you or sends you a text! The ferromagnetic ink, made of metal particles, is controlled wirelessly by the phone, causing the ink to vibrate on your skin. Ingenious? Or Creepy? tj